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Contemporary medicine is challenging, exciting and dynamic. Countless new discoveries are making their impact on medical practice, and the development of many new therapies and treatments arising from research in electronics, genetics and global health will mean future doctors face even more dramatic changes.

Medicine is an exciting and rewarding career. The training required to accomplish this goal will take nearly a decade AFTER high school and be extremely rigorous. Entry into medicine is competitive and you will need to demonstrate perseverance to complete the training, a strong desire to help others, a true intellectual curiosity about medicine in particular, and a love of learning in general. Are you up for the challenge?

In this essential guide we give you an overview of the steps to becoming a doctor in Australia, and provide relevant information and sign-posting where further information can be obtained.

Doctor Life Cycle

Preparing for medical school

#1 Complete year 12 (high school or college) or your undergraduate degree.

#2 Complete any pre-requisite subjects. Taking any science pre-requisites during high school or your undergraduate degree is important, as it's much harder to complete these pre-requisites after graduation. Remember too that choosing high level mathematics, chemistry, physics, biology and english will stand you in good stead as you study medicine.

The University of Sydney has just announced that students wishing to study BMedSc (undergraduate degree) and the Doctor of Medicine (graduate program) will need to meet these new prerequisites from 2019.

Students need to achieve Band 4 in the NSW Higher School Certificate (HSC) Mathematics (not General Mathematics) or similar result in equivalent interstate or IB subjects to enrol in a range of courses.

To assist you evaluate the interstate equivalents, the table below has been copied from the University of Sydney website. We recommend that you visit the site for full information on the new prerequisites and the courses to which they apply.

Subjects listed below are equivalent to the NSW Higher School Certificate (HSC) Mathematics (not General Mathematics).

Qualification

Equivalent subject

Equivalent result

International Baccalaureate (IB)

Mathematics SL or HL

SL 5 or HL 4

NSW Higher School Certificate (HSC)

Mathematics, Mathematics Extension 1 or 2

Mathematics (Band 4) or Extension (Band E3)

Australian Capital Territory Certificate of Education (ACT)

Mathematical Methods (Major) or Specialist Mathematics (Major)

142

Queensland Senior School Certificate (QCE)

Mathematics B

H

South Australia and Northern Territory Certificate of Education (SACE/NTCET)

#3 Get involved. Take on leadership roles at your school and in your community to demonstrate you can motivate your peers to action, particularly in ways that benefit the school or community. Consider volunteering at a hospital, free clinic, doctor’s office or with a medical researcher. Volunteer work that is not directly medical related such as with a charity or other community service is also valuable.

Medical schools do not judge applications on work experience, but gaining some work experience demonstrates that you have considered whether the demands of a caring profession is for you and that you are committed to studying medicine.

#4 Take the UMAT or GAMSAT. Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER), the organisation that conducts the Undergraduate Medical and Health Sciences Admission Test (UMAT) and Graduate Australian Medical Schools Admission Test (GAMSAT), produces free guides and preparation resources for applicants. Many private companies produce resources and run courses to prepare for these high-stakes tests, which can be very expensive. The Australian Medical Students' Association (AMSA) believes that high-cost UMAT and GAMSAT preparation courses are not necessary to achieve an adequate score and may create inequality for those students from low-socioeconomic and/or rural backgrounds.

UMAT 2019 entry: Registrations open and close at 5.00 pm AEST 1 July 2018 for UMAT test to be held on 25 July 2018. (www.acer.edu.au/umat). Results available mid September 2018.

GAMSAT 2019 entry: Registrations have closed for 24 March 2018 test.

#5 Choose a university that most speaks to you. To find the right medical school for you, consider academic reputation, size, distance from home, location, cost and of course their medical program. Apply to the medical schools that best suit your ambitions – but try for some you don’t think you can make it into, some you think you have a shot at, and some safety universities.

The pathways to medical school

There are two types of medical degrees available in Australia:

Five-year or six-year Undergraduate Bachelor degree

Equivalent professional entry Masters level degree

Medical education is provided by university medical schools accredited by the Australian Medical Council (AMC), of which there are currently 21 in Australia. A number of medical schools have recently moved to a doctor of medicine (MD or MChD) program where graduates receive a master’s qualification. All medical degrees offered by medical schools in Australia are equivalent for the purposes of commencing practice as a doctor.

Undergraduate entry medical programs

Generally, all medical programs require completion of year 12, or the overseas equivalent. Many undergraduate programs require applicants to complete year 12 Chemistry.

You do not need an ATAR of 100 to study medicine. The entry requirements for medical programs differ across schools and from year to year, so it's not possible to predict a "minimum" requirement. Your ATAR is considered by medical schools alongside your UMAT and interview scores to calculate your ranking for entrance.

You can maximise your chances of entry by getting a good ATAR, but also keep in mind that an ATAR of 100 does not mean you will automatically gain a place.

The Undergraduate Medicine and health Sciences Admission Test (UMAT) score is required to apply for undergraduate admission to 9 of the 21 registered medical schools in Australia. You will be assessed on your skills in critical thinking, problem solving, understanding people and abstract non-verbal reasoning - abilities considered important to the study and later practice of medicine. A good score on the UMAT, in combination with good grades, a high university entrance ranking and volunteer experience will stand you in good stead your medical school application.

UMAT is designed to complement your academic results not replicate them. It is not a personality or IQ test. UMAT is not applicable for admission to graduate-entry programs. Prospective applicants to these programs must take the Graduate Australian Medical School Admission test (GAMSAT).

Please note that JCU does not require UMAT for entry to its medical degree course. Visit www.jcu.edu.au for further information.

Please note that Bond University does not require UMAT for entry to its Bachelor of Medical Studies and this, combined with its Doctor of Medicine program are required for registration. Visit www.bond.edu.au for further information.

You will need a UMAT score to apply for 2019 undergraduate admission to any of the following Australian universities:

Queensland

Victoria

Tasmania

If you are applying for a five or six-year undergraduate medical program, an interview with the medical school is usually part of the selection process. If you are invited for an interview, it is important that you are sufficiently prepared. Seek guidance from your school careers adviser and opportunities to take part in practice medical school interviews.

An interview provides an opportunity for you to demonstrate your awareness of what studying medicine and becoming a doctor will entail. You may be asked questions about your motivation to study medicine, your understanding of the course, your study at school, hobbies, personal interests and current medical topics in the news. A key question will be your reasons for wanting to become a doctor.

Graduate entry medical program

If you are applying for a four-year graduate entry medical degree you will need to have completed a bachelor degree in any discipline. However, all medical programs have special access schemes for students with unique circumstances, for example those with significant experience in healthcare and a strong motivation to be a doctor. You should check with each University for more details.

A science degree is not a prerequisite for graduate-entry programs and academic excellence in the humanities and social sciences is encouraged and recognised; however, knowledge and ability in the biological and physical sciences will also be needed in order to succeed in the GAMSAT. Keep in mind that some graduate programs require completion of first year subjects in anatomy, physiology and/or biochemistry.

You will need to sit the Graduate Australian Medical Schools Admissions Test (GAMSAT) and attend an interview as part of the selection process. The GAMSAT will assess your ability to understand and analyse written and graphically presented material. It measures skills and knowledge acquired over a long period of time, as well as test your ability to reason, make logical deductions and form judgements.

South Australia

Victoria

Western Australia

What will I study during my degree?

Current medical courses integrate theory and practical components with clinical experience incorporated from early on in the course. However, the most significant clinical exposure will occur in the latter years of your degree in a range of settings and via simulating clinical situations.

While the courses offered in medicine vary between medical schools they will give you the solid basic knowledge of medicine and the training in clinical skills that you need to pursue the many career paths available in the medical profession. Each medical school can give you detailed information on the courses that they offer.

What type of medical student places are available?

There are three types of medical school places available at Australian universities.

There are three types of medical school places available at Australian universities:

Commonwealth supported places

Bonded places

Full fee-paying places

Commonwealth supported places

Commonwealth supported places are university places subsidised substantially by the Australian Government. It funds each public university for an agreed number of student places. Students are only required to pay a 'student contribution' amount for their units of study rather than tuition fees.

Commonwealth supported places are available to Australian citizens, New Zealand citizens and permanent residents. They are not available to international students.

As a student you will pay for a component of your degree – $10,596 per year for medical students in 2018 – and the remainder is subsidised by the government.

Australian citizens and permanent residents can get access to HECS-HELP to help students pay their student contribution amounts through a loan or upfront discounts. You can find out more at the Australian Government’s Study Assist website.

Bonded places

From the 2018 academic year, 28.5 percent of all first-year commonwealth supported places in medical schools are expected to be bonded through the Bonded Medical Place Scheme (BMPS).

In simple terms, the government sets aside medical school places for students willing to meet certain obligations when they complete their training. This is called the return-of-service obligation. If you apply for a bonded place you must meet the same entry requirements to medical school as other applicants.

In accepting a BMP place, you commit to working in a ‘district of workforce shortage’ for at least 12 months after you complete your medical degree, and to completing this return-of-service obligation prior to, or within five years of, finishing your specialist training. District of workforce shortages are usually outer-metropolitan, regional and rural areas and indigenous medical services.

Bonded students do not receive financial assistance, scholarships or other incentives for either their basic medical degree or postgraduate vocational training, and must pay their HECS-HELP debt in full.

If you choose to undertake your return-of-service obligation after completing your medical degree, but prior to admission into a training program leading to fellowship, you may complete your return-of-service obligation in any geographic area that is classified under the Modified Monash Model as a category 4-7 location.

The Modified Monash Model is the classification system used by the government to categorise metropolitan, regional, rural and remote areas according to both geographical remoteness and town size. More information on the classification system and how it applies to the BMPS is available in the Bonded Medical Place Scheme student information booklet for 2016.

If you choose to undertake your return-of-service obligation after starting a specialist training program, or when you become a specialist, you may complete it in any district of workforce shortage other than an inner metropolitan location, or in any geographic area that is classified under the Modified Monash Model as a category 4-7 location. Specialists (other than general practitioners) may also work in an inner metropolitan location if the location is classified as a district of workforce shortage for their specialty.

Following acceptance of an offer of a BMPS place, you will receive an agreement containing the terms and conditions which form part of a legal contract between you and the Commonwealth of Australia. You should seek legal advice to ensure that you fully understand all the terms and conditions before signing the BMPS agreement.

Significant penalties apply if you break your contract. You could lose your place in medical school and be liable to repay the entire amount of the government’s contribution, plus interest. This could amount to tens of thousands of dollars. Under the contract, the penalty for breaching the agreement becomes due for payment from the day that you breach the contract.

With increasing competition for entry into specialist colleges, you may not get into your preferred training program in the year and discipline that you want. These means you could breach the contract and incur penalties for reasons beyond your control.

While the opportunities to train in regional and rural areas are increasing, a bonded contract could limit your opportunities to pursue your preferred career path and specialty of choice - will you be able to train and work in a regional or rural area in your chosen specialty?

By the time the bonded period is due to start you may have a partner, children, established a home and social networks that are not easy to leave. How would your personal life be affected if you had to relocate to meet your return-of-service obligation?

Before accepting a bonded place, you should review closely all available information, obtain independent legal advice and consider alternative options for securing a place in medical school.

Full fee-paying places

Many public universities offer undergraduate and graduate entry full fee places to international students. Private universities are able to offer full fee places to Australian students.

Public universities generally cannot offer full fee places to Australian students, the exceptions being some of the Doctor of Medicine postgraduate medical degrees offered by some public universities.

As a full fee-paying student, the Australian Government does not contribute towards your study costs. Instead, you pay a tuition fee for each subject in the course, which must be paid in full and upfront.

On average, a standard full-time year of study in the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) can cost over $60,000 for domestic students and $75,000 for international students.

In 2014, 20 per cent of all medical students were fee-paying with nearly two-thirds of these occupied by international students.

International full fee-paying students are not guaranteed an internship following graduation from medical school, and may have to continue their training overseas.

What’s next after graduation?

On completing your medical degree, you receive provisional registration and enter the workforce as an intern or postgraduate year 1 (PGY1) doctor. This part of your training lasts for 12 months (47 weeks full time), and is usually undertaken in a public hospital - although interns will increasingly spend part of their training in general practice, community-based settings and private hospitals in the future.

As an Intern, you will undertake a series of work rotations designed to expose you to a range of clinical situations and environments. This stage will help inform career choices for many graduates by providing experience in different medical specialties including general practice and provides grounding for subsequent specialist training.

Your 12 month internship will incorporate the following:

8wks – emergency medical careProviding assessment and management of patients with acute undifferentiated illnesses – including acutely ill patients. Can be undertaken in emergency or in some general practice settings that provide equivalent experiences.

10wks – medicineCaring for patients with a broad range of medical conditions. Participating in assessment and admission of patients with acute medical problems. Managing in-patients with a range of general medical conditions.Discharge planning (including preparation of discharge summaries and other components of handover) to the patient's GP and sub-acute/long-term care facility or ambulance care.

10wks – surgeryCaring for patients with broad range of acute and elective surgical conditions and/or who exhibit the common features of surgical illness including metabolic response to trauma, infection, shock and tumours (neoplasia).

19wks − a range of other approved positions in areas such as aged care, anaesthesia, general practice, palliative medicine, psychiatry, rehabilitation medicine or surgery.

Workforce issues for the future - the journey forward

The AMA wrote to former Health Minister Sussan Ley outlining serious concerns that rural Australia is not attracting and retaining sufficient doctors to meet current and future need, and offering solutions.

The then AMA President, Professor Brian Owler, said the Government must set more ambitious targets to get Commonwealth-supported students with a rural background into medical schools, and increase the proportion of medical students required to undertake extended rural clinical rotations.

“The Government has significantly boosted domestic medical student numbers and there are now record numbers of medical graduates, which is encouraging,” Professor Owler said.

“But, despite this, it appears that rural Australia is still struggling to recruit and retain sufficient numbers of locally trained doctors.

“The ‘trickle down’ approach to solving workforce maldistribution is not working, and simply boosting medical student numbers even further will have little or no impact on this problem.

“In fact, it could have the opposite effect by placing more pressure on an already stretched medical training pipeline - a problem acknowledged in modelling undertaken by the former Health Workforce Australia.

“Health Workforce Australia identified that Australia has enough medical students, and the focus must now shift to how to better distribute the medical workforce.

“At the moment, medical schools must meet a benchmark of a minimum 25 percent of students with a rural background, and the number of students who must undertake extended rural clinical rotations.

“Currently, just under 28 per cent of commencing domestic medical students come from a rural background, with this number having increased slowly over the years.

“We need smarter solutions. The targets must be lifted significantly - from 25 per cent of students to a third.”

The AMA recommends:

the targeted intake of medical students from a rural background be lifted from 25 per cent of all new enrolments to one third of all new enrolments; and

the proportion of medical students required to undertake at least one year of clinical training in a rural area be lifted from 25 per cent to one third.

There is good evidence that medical students who undertake extended training in a rural area, and those from a rural background, are more likely to take up rural practice upon graduation.

While existing policy settings have sought to promote this to some extent, rural workforce shortages persist. The latest data from the Medical Students Outcome Database Survey (MSOD) reports that 76 per cent of domestic graduates are living in capital cities.

Professor Owler said the AMA is urging the Health Minister to act quickly, amid speculation that the Government has no interest in raising the targets beyond existing levels.

“The implementation of more ambitious targets may prove challenging in the short term, but there is evidence that this approach would be more successful in getting more young doctors living and working in rural Australia than simply funding more student places.

“We need to do more to promote the rewards of rural medical practice,” Professor Owler said.

Along with its recommendations to increase the targets for students with rural backgrounds and rural training rotations, the AMA is pushing a range of initiatives to attract young doctors to rural practice, including:

Regional Training Hubs announced by Assistant Health Minister, David Gillespie

Twenty six new Regional Training Hubs will create more opportunities for young doctors to stay, study, work and live in rural and regional Australia, rather than returning to cities for all of their postgraduate training.

Three new University Departments of Rural Health (UDRH) will also deliver more opportunities for undergraduate nursing, midwifery and allied health students to train in the regions.

“Through this funding, the Coalition is creating more than 140 full-time jobs within universities for the operation of the Regional Training Hubs and UDRHs,” Federal Assistant Minister for Health, Dr David Gillespie said in July 2017.

This is an additional investment through the Rural Health Multidisciplinary Training program, with an additional $54.4 million available over 2016-17 to 2018-19 to support these exciting new developments.

“All of the universities involved in these initiatives have now signed on, and are meeting with local health and medical providers about these new programs that are being set up in their regions.”

Regional training hubs will work with healthcare providers, specialist colleges and local health authorities to develop training pathways for young doctors in the regions. The UDRHs are gearing up to start providing rural training placements to nursing and allied health students, providing the opportunity to experience the benefits and challenges of becoming a rural health practitioner.

“Both of these Coalition Government initiatives support high quality rural placements for health students from across Australia, to help ensure rural communities have access to doctors, nurses, midwives and allied health professionals in the future,” Minister Gillespie said.

“Supporting rural health training is an important way to address rural health workforce shortages. These initiatives will help the Coalition Government deliver on its commitment to create jobs and provide first rate health and medical services to all Australians – regardless of where they live.”

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) called on the Government to urgently invest in training positions for junior doctors in rural communities, rather than continuing to fund the establishment of new medical schools.

AMSA’s ‘Doctors For Rural Communities’ proposal outlines a $46 million investment to enable 306 doctors to undertake 12 months of their training, or 61 doctors to undertake five years of their training, in regional, rural, and remote Australia.

The proposal seeks an investment roughly equivalent to the cost of establishing a new medical school.

Former AMSA President, Elise Buisson said that there are immediate benefits in expanding rural speciality training pathways that follow graduation from medical school rather than investing in new medical schools themselves.

“A new medical school will not create additional doctors for rural Australia. Instead, it will strain a system that is already struggling to provide training to existing young doctors and students who are passionate about rural medicine.

“Medical training does not begin and end with medical school. In some cases, more than a decade of training in hospitals ahead of graduation is needed before students become fully-qualified doctors.

“We need to make sure we can provide high quality training in rural communities.

“We cannot be slow to act on improving rural health any longer. The people of rural Australia deserve better access to much-needed medical staff, including more general practitioners and other specialists.”

Respected rural doctors, Dr Darryl Mackender, a gastroenterologist at Orange Base Hospital and Dr John Preddy, a Head of Department at Wagga Wagga Rural Referral Hospital, have already put forward their support for the ‘Doctors For Rural Communities’ proposal.

Professor Nicholas Glasgow, former President of the Medical Deans Australia and New Zealand, has also come out in support of expanding rural training pathways and not funding the creation of new medical schools.

Medical students interested in working in rural and remote health are celebrating an agreement to develop a framework for a national Rural Generalist Pathway.

The Australian Medical Students’ Association Rural Health Committee (AMSA RHC) welcomed the announcement by National Rural Health Commissioner Professor Paul Worley recently of the agreement between the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) and the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM) to develop a national framework for Rural Generalism as a medical specialty.

Nic Batten, AMSA RHC Co-Chair, said: “We are thrilled to hear that ACRRM and RACGP have together committed to the goal of a National Rural Generalist Pathway.”

Ms Batten said the Rural Generalist role is critical to addressing the complex healthcare needs of our rural and remote communities. It will also offer a clear career path for students and young doctors who want to work in the bush.

Many students who are committed to working in rural communities aspire to work as an all-rounder doctor, caring for patients in a range of settings and with the skills to match.

Rural Generalism combines general practice and advanced skills, such as anaesthetics, emergency medicine, or obstetrics, allowing doctors to obtain further training in their areas of interest and best serve the needs of their community.

“For young doctors, this framework represents an exciting opportunity - a clear rural training pathway, options to pursue their interests, and the flexibility of having their qualifications recognised across States,” Ms Batten said.

“This program is a first step towards addressing the maldistribution of the workforce in regional areas, ensuring better health outcomes for rural Australians.”

“We welcome the attention and investment being given to medical training and research, but investment in vocational training will deliver much greater benefits for rural Australians than more medical schools.”

This material is generic in nature and is made available on the understanding that the AMA is not engaged in rendering professional advice. Before relying on the material provided, users should carefully evaluate its accuracy, currency, completeness and relevance for their purposes, and should obtain professional advice relevant to their particular circumstances where necessary.Whilst every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information on this Resource Hub, the AMA or its employees cannot be held responsible for any loss or damage arising to any person as a result of using this site.